“Konbumaki is a New Year’s dish, so I thought it’d fit in well with the holidays. It’s also a staple dish in Okazuya restaurants, which are my favorite breakfast when I’m back home in Hawaii. It’s visually stunning, but not too much work (especially with a lot of family members helping out!).

The small and consistent size of the quail breasts makes them a really easy substitute for rolled dishes like Konbumaki – they’re easy to cut to the size you need.” Jade

6-8 Appetizer or 3-4 Entrée Servings

Each bundle is tied with an edible cord called kanpyo, which is made of calabash gourd shavings. It’s sold dried in many Asian grocery stores or can be purchased online.

Jade says that when buying the konbu for this dish, it’s important to get “nishime” or “oden” konbu, rather than the konbu sold for making dashi broth (which is thicker & will rehydrate too tough for chewing).